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“Not from us. We view West Brom as a really difficult and challenging fixture.

“It’s one of those games with local rivalry,” Hughes acknowledged. “We’d like to feel we can go there and get a positive result. We haven’t had too much luck in recent seasons and want to improve on that.

“We feel we are playing well at the moment and that needs to be the case going to West Brom. It’s a difficult place to go and we are not the only ones who find it difficult.

“I think it will be a very, very close game, it usually is and there won’t be too many goals.

Fierce rivalry... Mark Hughes and Tony Pulis (Image: Getty Images)

“I wouldn’t imagine it would be too open because that’s not the way Tony sets his team up. They are very organised, solid with people behind the ball early, but they are very good on the counter and you have to respect their ability on set pieces as well.”

Hughes looked a little surprised to be asked if he and Pulis had the same mindset when it came to players because they always appear to be chasing the same transfer targets.

“I’m not too sure about that,” he grinned. “I just think we are two clubs trying to improve and there’s a certain level of player you need to go for and those type of players don’t come on the market too readily and when they do clubs like ourselves, West Brom, West Ham will be in the market for the same kind of player.